Will a BTA reject...

[Falconeer]

Hi all, i've had my GBTA for probably a month now. He's maybe 5-6" across when open (probably a little more, but that's a safe estimate). He has good coloration and has found his happy place in the tank (until he decides to move again, haha).

My question is, I've fed him probably 6 or 7 times with small pieces of table shrimp. The first four or five he ate up without any problems at all. The last two he has rejected in the first few minutes.

Could it be that he's tired of shrimp? Or is he tired of this shrimp? I have been using the same one, simply freezing and thawing each time I want to cut a piece off. OR, is he sick and simply not showing any external signs?

Thanks,
Falc.

 

[WaffleWalffle22]

You're probably feeding him way too much. You'll learn, be it now or in a year, how much to feed them. It took me a year, and I probably killed 10+ anemones by overfeeding. Finally I realized my mistake, and now I feed mysis every 2 weeks. Don't feed the anemone anymore for at least a month. At this point it is better to not feed him. Anemones use almost all of the energy from the food just digesting it, so I would say feed every 2 weeks or even less often than that. If you have MH then you should be fine feeding him 1 time per month, or not feeding him at all and letting him catch scraps from when you feed the fish. Post a picture of the anemone. If you see him sucking on his tentacles or losing tentacles, that is probably a great indicator that he is overfed. Are his tentacles sticky? If not then you probably want to leave him alone for a few months. Remember: It is always better to not feed anemones than to over feed them. As I said, let the anemone catch food on its own when you're feeding the tank because in the wild that is what happens. GoOd LuCk!

 

[Falconeer]

Ok, thank you very much. I had read to feed twice a week ish, and his tentacles are not as sticky as when he first arrived so I'll wait a month before feeding again. He's not sucking on or losing his tentacles, and responds to the lights turning on and off relatively quickly.

Thanks for the response!

 

[Falconeer]

Ok, thank you very much. I had read to feed twice a week ish, and his tentacles are not as sticky as when he first arrived so I'll wait a month before feeding again. He's not sucking on or losing his tentacles, and responds to the lights turning on and off relatively quickly.

Thanks for the response!

EDIT: Sorry about the double post

 

[garygb]

It could be that the reason your anemone isn't eating the shrimp is because you've been feeding the same food over and over. I find with my anemones that repeatedly feeding the same thing results in a less vigorous feeding response. There is nothing wrong with feeding your BTA a couple of times per week. You will get more rapid growth which you may or may not want. Once a week feedings would be fine too, or even less if you have fish and feed the tank regularly. I don't think it is inherently harmful to "overfeed" an anemone. The real concern is how too much food will impact the system, e.g., an ammonia spike.

 

[bues0022]

What size tank, what lights, and what are your water parameters? Has the coloration changed at all? IMO, BTA's hardly ever need to be fed anything directly assuming the water parameters and lights are sufficiently acceptable. Furthermore, if you are feeding table shrimp, are they cooked or raw? Only feed chopped-up, raw, human-grade food to your tank inhabitants. (I dislike silversides - too big and I'm leery of the quality from possibly being frozen/thawed too many times during shippment). Anything meaty you'd feed your fish you can feed your nem - if you decide to spot feed. Don't kill it with kindness!

 

[Falconeer]

What size tank, what lights, and what are your water parameters? Has the coloration changed at all? IMO, BTA's hardly ever need to be fed anything directly assuming the water parameters and lights are sufficiently acceptable. Furthermore, if you are feeding table shrimp, are they cooked or raw? Only feed chopped-up, raw, human-grade food to your tank inhabitants. (I dislike silversides - too big and I'm leery of the quality from possibly being frozen/thawed too many times during shippment). Anything meaty you'd feed your fish you can feed your nem - if you decide to spot feed. Don't kill it with kindness!

The tank is only a 10 gallon but all the parameters are on par and all my corals are healthy too.
The lights are 36W of PC, but they're maybe 3" above the surface of the water, and the nem when opened is less than an inch from the surface. The coloration has not changed at all since I got him, I still see just as much green as I did in the store, and absolutely no bleaching.

I have only been feeding him small bits of a raw piece of shrimp that I saved from a batch intended for a family dinner, so yes, it's human-grade, haha.

 

[WaffleWalffle22]

I have to admit, 110w over my 34g is still not the best for BTA, but it does work. A 10g is a bit too small to successfully keep a BTA unless you have super stable parameters and good lighting. Is there any chance that you could upgrade bulbs to like 50w+ PC? It would definitely help the anemone and would be cheap if you're on a budget. Remember, as Hitler says in this video, Hitler Finds Out About AEFW , not everything you read online is 100% true. It is better to take to people on forums. What may work for someone may not work for you. Wait a month for the anemone to digest all of that food, and it he is doing well, then you can start feeding him just a few pieces of mysis shrimp every 2 weeks.